Meaningful success requires strategy.
Dreams are easy; strategy makes you sweat.
Dreams without strategy are:
- Ships without rudders.
- Passions without direction.
- Excuses for stagnation.
- Comfort to irresponsible leaders.
- Hopes without substance. Rudy Giuliani said, “Hope is not a strategy.”
12 questions that move dreams to reality:
- What business are we in?
- What business aren’t we in? “The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.” Michael Porter
- What does success look like?
- What do we aspire to achieve? “Sound strategy starts with the right goal.” Michael Porter
- Who are our current and potential customers? Drucker makes it clear, “The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer.”
- Who aren’t our customers? “You can’t be all things to all people.” Michael Porter
- How will we create new customers?
- How will we keep current customers?
- What are current strengths and capacities?
- What strengths and capacities must we develop?
- How will we monitor and measure success?
- What management systems best exploit and enhance our strengths and capacities.
Outward:
Strategy always faces outward where results come from.
An inward facing strategy assures extinction.
Future:
Strategy includes thinking about the future. But, effective strategy is always executed in the present.
“Long-range planning does not deal with the future decisions, but with the future of present decisions.” Peter Drucker
What are the essentials for developing effective strategy?
** Suggested resource: “Playing to Win.”